News

Over 70 people were assisted and, because of the Bus, 20 of them were treated on the spot, avoiding a journey to A&E.

Wayne Powell, SOS Bus Manager gives an account of activity over the period:

‘We don’t normally operate on Thursday nights but in the build up to Christmas and in consultation with the police we thought it best to have the SOS Bus out on the 22nd and this proved to be worthwhile. A team of six SOS Bus volunteers and five St John Ambulance volunteers were on hand all evening. The town turned out to be very busy and we assisted people with a range of needs including medical treatment and drink related problems. The Thursday shift saw mainly assault related injuries and we worked very closely with the police and ambulance service to reduce as many A&E admissions as possible. Nevertheless, five people had injuries serious enough to have to go to hospital.

On the Friday, again we had a full team of SOS Bus volunteers and St John Ambulance. This night was fairly quiet compared to the 22nd, so this gave our volunteers an opportunity to speak to members of the public, visit venues and meet with door staff during the evening. Our relationship with these organisations is vital – by closely cooperating we can pool resources and deal with issues as soon as they arise. At least 3 of our clients would have needed to be transported to hospital had the SOS Bus not been in town so it wasn’t a wasted effort.
Christmas Eve this year fell on a Saturday and we didn’t know if it would be busy or quiet. People were obviously keen to get to bed before Santa arrived as it turned out to be just a ‘typical’ Saturday night. We were also lucky enough to have a paramedic with us, provided by North East Essex PCT, who gave extra medical support such as gluing, stitching and suturing etc. This meant that we managed to avoid any ambulances being called and all clients were kept out of A&E. Most people managed to find their own way home but the SOS Support vehicle was quiet enough to be able to take two vulnerable individuals all the way home.

As expected, Friday 30th turned out to be quiet as many people had decided to stay at home and save their money for New Year’s Eve. Most venues closed at around 2.00am – earlier than usual so we also shut up shop at 2.00am and headed home for a welcome early night. 

With New Year’s Eve falling on a Saturday night, we had planned for to it to be extra busy. Due to the dedication of our volunteer team, we managed to provide 9 SOS Bus volunteers plus 7 St John Ambulance volunteers - all on shift. St John Ambulance also donated a dedicated ambulance to back up the Bus’ own treatment room and the PCT paid for a doctor to be on the bus throughout the night. From 10.00pm onwards, the volunteers were kept busy all night with various calls from around the town to its venues and streets. Over 20 were given medical treatment and of these, only one needed to be taken to hospital via ambulance. The rest were dealt with at the SOS Bus. Others were suffering the effects of alcohol or needed a place of safety after feeling vulnerable. The Police spent a lot of time with us and complemented us on the running of the bus and the service it provides. Senior police officers also paid us a visit and made hot drinks for the volunteers.’

So, 2012 is now with us and we hope that, if continued funding can be found, we will continue to see this vital service on the High Street. It is an invaluable resource and it keeps crime figures and hospital admissions substantially down on what they would otherwise be. Open Road and its supporters will be doing their best to make sure the SOS Bus is not lost from our Town Centre.

If you would like to donate or find out more about volunteering on the SOS Bus, please contact Wayne Powell, SOS Bus Manager at Open Road for further information.